Five Go Down to the Sea (6 page)

„I should like to," said George firmly. „I never was keen on this “Keep away from anything unusual” idea we suddenly had. We"ve got Timmy with us - we can"t possibly come to any harm!"

„Al right," said Anne, with a sigh. „I give up. We"ll go if you want to."

„Good old Anne," said Dick, giving her a friendly slap on the back. „But you needn"t come, you know. Why don"t you stay behind and hear our story when we come back?"

'Certainly not," said Anne, quite cross. „I may not want to go as much as you do, but I"m not going to be left out of anything, so don"t think it!"

„Al right. It"s settled then," said Julian. „We take our opportunity and go as soon as we can, Tomorrow, perhaps."

Mrs Penruthlan came to the door and cal ed them. „Your high tea is ready. You must be hungry. Come along indoors."

The sun suddenly went in. Julian looked up at the sky in surprise. „My word, look at those black clouds!" he said. „There"s a storm coming! Well, I thought there might be, it"s been so terribly hot all day!"

„A storm!" said George. „That light flashes on wild and stormy nights! Oh, Julian, do you think it wil flash tonight? Can"t we - can"t we go and see?"

Before the children had finished their high tea, the big kitchen-sitting-room was quite dark.

Thunder clouds had moved up from the west, gathering together silently, frowning and sinister. Then, from far off, came the first rumble of thunder.

The little Scottie came and cowered against Mrs Penruthlan"s skirts. He hated storms. The farmer"s wife comforted him, and her big husband gave a little unexpected snort of laughter. He said something that sounded like „oose".

„He"s not as timid as a mouse," said his wife, who was real y marvel ous at interpreting her husband"s peculiar noises. „He just doesn"t like the thunder. He never did. He can sleep with us in our room tonight."

There were a few more sounds from Mr Penruthlan to which his wife listened anxiously.

„Very well, if you have to get up and see to Jenny the horse in the night, I"l see Benny doesn"t bark the house down," she said. She turned to the children. „Don"t worry if you hear him barking," she said. „It wil only be Mr Penruthlan stirring."

The thunder crashed and rumbled again, this time a little nearer, and then lightning flashed. Then down came the rain. How it poured! It rattled and clattered on the roof in enormous drops, and then settled down into a steady downpour.

The four children got out their cards and played games by the light of the oil lamp. There was no electricity at Tremannon. Timmy sat with his head on George"s knee. He didn"t mind the thunder but he didn"t particularly like it.

„Well, I think we"d better go to bed," said Julian at last. He knew that the Penruthlans liked to go to bed early because they got up so early, and as they did not go upstairs until after the children did, Julian saw to it that they, too, went early.

They said good night and went up to their bare little rooms. The windows were stil open and the smal curtains drawn back, so that the hil s, lit now and again by lightning, showed up clearly. The children went and stood there, watching. They all loved a storm, especial y Dick. There was something powerful and most majestic about this kind of storm, sweeping over hil s and sea, rumbling al round, and tearing the sky in half with flashes of lightning.

„Julian, is it possible to go up to that place the shepherd showed us and see if the light flashes tonight?" said George. „You only laughed when I asked you before."

„Well, I laugh again!" said Julian. „Of course not! We"d be drenched, and I don"t fancy being out in this lightning on those exposed hil s, either."

„Al right," said George. „Anyway, I don"t feel quite such an urge to go now that it"s so pitch dark."

„Just as well," said Julian. „Come on, Dick, let"s go to bed."

The storm went on for some time, rumbling al round the hil s again, as if it were going round in a circle. The girls fel asleep, but the boys tossed about, feeling hot and sticky.

„Dick," said Julian, suddenly, „let"s get up and go out. It"s stopped raining. Let"s go and see if that light is flashing tonight. It should be just the night for it, according to old Grandad."

„Right," said Dick, and sat up, feeling for his clothes. „I simply can"t go to sleep, even though I felt real y sleepy when I undressed."

They pul ed on as few clothes as possible, for the night was stil thundery and hot. Julian took his torch and Dick hunted for his.

„Got it," he said at last. „Are you ready? Come on, then. Let"s tiptoe past the Penruthlans"

door, or we may wake that dog Scottie! He"s sleeping there tonight, don"t forget."

They tiptoed along the passage, past the Penruthlans" door and down the stairs. One stair creaked rather alarmingly, and they stopped in dismay, wondering if Ben the Scottie would break out into a storm of barking.

But he didn"t. Good! Down they went again, switching on their torches to see the way.

They came to the bottom of the stairs. „Shall we go out by the front door or back door, Ju?" whispered Dick.

„Back," said Julian. „The front door"s so heavy to open. Come on."

So they went down the passage to the back door that led out from the kitchen. It was locked and bolted, but the two boys opened it without too much noise.

They stepped out into the night. The rain had now stopped, but the sky was stil dark and overclouded. Tne thunder rumbled away in the distance. A wind had got up and blew cool y against the boys" faces.

„Nice cocl breeze," whispered Dick. „Now - do we go through the farm-yard? Is that the shortest way to the stile we have to climb over into that first field?"

„Yes, i think so," said Julian. They made their way across the silent farm-yard, where, in the daytime, such a lot of noise went on, clucking, quacking, grunting, clip-clopping, and shouting!

Now it was dark and deserted. They passed the barns and the stables. A little

„hrrrrrrumphing" came from one of the stables. „That"s Jenny, the horse that"s not well,"

said Julian, stopping. „Let"s just have a look at her and see if she"s al right. She was lying down feeling very sorry for herself when I saw her last."

They flashed their torch over the top half of the stable door, which was pul ed back to let in air. They looked in with interest.

Jenny was no longer lying down. She was standing up, munching something. Goodness, she must be quite al right again! She whinnied to the two boys.

They left her and went on. They came to the stile and climbed over. The rain began drizzling again, and if the boys had not had their torches with them they would not have been able to see a step in front of them, it was so dark.

„I say, Ju - did you hear that?" said Dick, stopping suddenly.

„No. What?" said Julian, listening.

„Well, it sounded like a cough," said Dick.

„One of the sheep," suggested Julian. „I heard one old sheep coughing just like Uncle Quentin does sometimes, sort of hol ow and mournful."

„No. It wasn"t a sheep," said Dick. „Anyway, there aren"t any in this field."

„You imagined it," said Julian. „I bet there"s nobody idiotic enough to be out on a night like this, except ourselves!"

They went on cautiously over the field. The thunder began again, a little nearer. Then came a flash, and again the thunder. Dick stopped dead once more and clutched Julian"s arm.

„There"s somebody a good way in front of us, the lightning just lighted him up for half a second. He was climbing over that stile, the one we"re making for. Who do you suppose it is on a night like this?"

„He"s apparently going the same way that we are," said Julian. „Well, I suppose if we saw him he"s quite likely to have seen us!"

„Not unless he was looking backwards," said Dick. „Come on, let"s see where he"s going."

They went on cautiously towards the stile. They came to it and climbed over. And then a hand suddenly clutched hold of Dick"s shoulder!

He jumped almost out of his skin! The hand gripped him so hard and so fiercely that Dick shouted in pain and tried to wriggle away from the powerful grip.

Julian felt a hand lunge at him, too, but dodged and pressed himself into the hedge. He switched off his torch at once and stood quite stil , his heart thumping quickly.

„Let me go!" shouted Dick, wriggling like an eel. His shirt was almost tom off his back in his struggles. He kicked out at the man"s ankles and for one moment his captor loosened his grasp. That was enough for Dick. He ripped himself away and left his shirt in the man"s hand!

He ran up the lane into which the stile had led and flung himself under a bush in the darkness, panting. He heard his captor coming along, muttering, and Dick pressed himself farther into the bush. A torchlight swept the ground near him, but missed him.

Dick waited til the footsteps had gone and then crawled out. He went quietly down tht lane. „Julian!" he whispered, and jumped as a voice answered almost in his ear, just above his head!

„I"m here. Are you all right?"

Dick looked up into the darkness of a tree, but could see nothing. „I"ve dropped my torch somewhere," he said. „Where are you, Ju? Up in the tree?"

A hand groped out and felt his head. „Here I am, on the first branch," said Julian. „I hid in the hedge first and then climbed up here. I daren"t put on my torch in case that fel ow"s anywhere around and sees it."

„He"s gone up the lane," said Dick. „My word, he nearly wrenched my shoulder off. Half my shirt"s gone! Who was he? Did you see?"

„No, I didn"t," said Julian, clambering down. „Let"s find your torch before we go home. It"s too good to lose. It must be by that stile."

They went to look. Julian stil didn"t like to put on his torch, so that it was more a question of feeling for Dick"s torch, not looking! Dick suddenly trod on it and picked it up thankfully.

„Listen, there"s that fel ow coming back again, I"m sure!" said Dick. „I heard the same dry little cough! What shall we do?"

„Well, I don"t now feel like going up to the shepherd"s hil to see if that light is flashing from the tower," said Julian. „I vote we hide and fol ow this chap to see where he goes. I don"t think anyone who is wandering out tonight can be up to any good."

„Yes. Good idea," said Dick. „Squash into the hedge again. Blow, there are nettles here!

Just my luck."

The footsteps came nearer, and the cough came again. „I seem to know that cough,"

whispered Dick.

„Sh!" said Julian.

The man came up to the stile, and they heard him climbing over it. After a short time both boys followed cautiously. They couldn"t hear the man"s footsteps across the grass, but the sky had cleared a little and they could just make out a moving shadow ahead of them.

They followed him at a distance, holding their breath whenever they kicked against a stone or cracked a twig beneath their feet. Now and again they heard the cough.

„He"s making for the farm," whispered Julian. He could just see the outline of the big barns against the sky. „Do you think he"s one of the labourers? They live in cottages round about."

The man came to the farm-yard and walked through it, trying to make as little sound as possible. The boys fol owed. He went round the barns and into the little garden that Mrs Penruthlan tended herself. Stil the boys followed.

Round to the front door went the man, and the boys held their breath. Was he going to burgle the farmhouse? They tiptoed nearer. There came the sound of a soft click, and then of bolts being shot home! After that there was silence.

„He"s gone in," said Julian in amazement.

„Don"t you know who it was? Can"t you guess now?" said Dick. „We both ought to have known when we heard that cough! It was Mr Penruthlan! No wonder he almost dislocated my shoulder with his strong hand!"

„Mr Penruthlan - gosh, yes, you"re right," said Julian, astonished, almost forgetting to speak in a whisper. „We didn"t notice that the front door was undone because we went out the back way. So it was he we followed. How sil y! But what was he doing out on the hil s? He didn"t go to see the horse, she wasn"t il ."

„Perhaps he likes a walk at night," suggested Dick. „Come on, let"s go in ourselves. I feel a bit chil y with practically no shirt on!"

They crept round to the back door. It was stil open, thank goodness! They went inside, bolted and locked it, and tiptoed upstairs. They heaved sighs of relief when they were safely in their room again.

„Switch on your torch, Julian, and see if my shoulder is bruised," said Dick. „It feels jol y painful."

Julian flashed his torch on Dick"s shoulder. He gave a low whistle. „My word, you"ve got a wonderful bruise al down your right shoulder. He must have given you an awful wrench."

„He did," said poor Dick. „Well, I can"t say we had a very successful time, followed our host through the night, got caught by him, and followed him al the way back here. Not very clever!"

„Well, never mind, I bet no light flashed in that tower," said Julian, getting into bed. „We haven"t lost much by not going al the way to see!"

The two boys looked curiously at Mr Penruthlan the next morning. It seemed strange to think of their little adventure the night before with him, and he didn"t even know it was they he had tried to catch! He gave the curious little dry cough again, and Julian nudged Dick and grinned.

Mrs Penruthlan was beaming at the head of the breakfast table as usual. „Did you sleep well, all of you?" she asked. „The storm soon died down, didn"t it?"

Mr Penruthlan got up said „Ah, ock, oooh!" or something that sounded like that, and went out.

„What did he say?" asked Anne curiously. She could not think how anyone could possibly understand Mr Penruthlan"s extraordinary speech. Julian had said that he thought he must talk in shorthand!

„He said he might not be back for dinner," said Mrs Penruthlan. „I hope he"ll get some somewhere. He had his breakfast at half past six, and that"s very early. I"m glad he came in and had a cup of your breakfast tea now. The poor man had a very bad night, I"m sorry to say."